New Hidden Tear strain — Goofed ransomware

Goofed – yet another version of Hidden Tear virus which was spotted in the second half of November 2017. Alternatively, it is known as Goofed HT ransomware. It acts like any other file-encrypting virus that encodes data on the victimized computer and insists on paying a ransom to recover the documents. It is easily recognized by the hidden-tear.exe executable file and .goofed extension which is appended at the end of victim's file-names. Finally, the virus drops a YOU_DONE_GOOFED.txt ransom note.

Note that there are numerous versions of the infamous Hidden Tear virus such as Jhash, Curumim, DolphinTear, Foxy, and many other. They are all based on the same source code obtained from the parent program and Goofed ransomware is not an exception.

Goofed virus uses complex algorithms to encrypt the most widely used data:

Videos;

Documents;

Archives;

Images and other valuable information.

After Goofed HT ransomware finishes to encode data, it places a text file informing the victims about the attack. The ransom note states the following:

Files has been encrypted with hidden tearSend me $100 in bitcoin to 112eFWptVuBw9KzVZFvgx8ERnqYMsY6HLjAnd email me at hiddentear@protonmail.com for your decryption key.

We do not recommend paying the ransom since criminals cannot be trusted. You can find numerous complaints by the people who made transactions and received a useless decryption key[1] or didn’t receive it at all. Therefore, the smartest choice would be to remove Goofed virus and do not finance crooks’ malicious activity.

You can start Goofed removal by downloading a powerful anti-malware program. Our top picks would be Reimage and MalwarebytesMalwarebytesCombo Cleaner since they are reliable and able to finish the termination process quickly. Besides, you should know that eliminating the malicious program does not recover your data. Thus, you should try to retrieve them from backups or use alternative recovery methods.

Understand how ransomware spreads to avoid its attack

Many people get infected with file-encrypting viruses because they are incautious and do not know how they are distributed. Typically, hackers employ not one, but many techniques to spread the ransomware rapidly.

The most commonly used one is to send spam e-mails that contain the executable files of the malware[2]. People do not recognize the ransomware since it is carefully hidden — developers impersonate invoices or other sales’ bills from well-known companies. Therefore, people get tricked to open the malicious e-mail and download an .exe file of the virus.

Another alternatively efficient technique is to release fake software updates to the web. Usually, computer users seek to download programs or their upgrades for free. Likewise, they end up at suspicious websites offering illegal downloads where hackers put their infected updates.

If you want to avoid the file-encrypting virus attack, you should definitely track every step you make while browsing. It is useful to employ a professional security software and scan files before downloading them. Also, install software only from verified distributors and stay away from unreliable ads which are promoted on vague pages.

Additionally, be careful with your e-mail letters. Crooks might hack into your friends’ accounts and use them to send messages with malware-laden links as well. Thus, don’t be shy to contact your friend in person in case you receive a suspicious text.

Goofed virus termination is the best solution

You should be aware that usually, ransomware is able to open backdoors for criminals to infiltrate other high-risk computer infections into your system. Besides, the malicious program might contain a Trojan component that is designed to track and steal your personal information such as credentials, log-in names, and passwords. Likewise, NoVirus.uk[3] experts suggest you to remove Goofed virus with a powerful anti-malware program to eliminate its components as well.

Remember that if you try to terminate the ransomware by yourself, you might not be able to recognize all of its elements and remain infected. The worst case scenario could be that you would delete files that are necessary for your operating system and damage your computer permanently.

Therefore, our team suggests following the Goofed removal instructions that are presented below. They will guide you through the process and highlight essential steps to succeed in the malware elimination.

What to do if failed?
If you failed to remove virus damage using Reimage, submit a question to our support team and provide as much details as possible.

Reimage is recommended to remove virus damage. Free scanner allows you to check whether your PC is infected or not. If you need to remove malware, you have to purchase the licensed version of Reimage malware removal tool.

Log in to your infected account and start the browser. Download Reimage or other legitimate anti-spyware program. Update it before a full system scan and remove malicious files that belong to your ransomware and complete Goofed removal.

If your ransomware is blocking Safe Mode with Networking, try further method.

When a new window shows up, click Next and select your restore point that is prior the infiltration of Goofed. After doing that, click Next.

Now click Yes to start system restore.

Once you restore your system to a previous date, download and scan your computer with Reimage and make sure that Goofed removal is performed successfully.

Bonus: Recover your data

Guide which is presented above is supposed to help you remove Goofed from your computer. To recover your encrypted files, we recommend using a detailed guide prepared by 2-spyware.com security experts.

Since ransomware removal does not work as a decryption tool for the corrupted data, you can try alternative recovery methods that are mentioned below.

If your files are encrypted by Goofed, you can use several methods to restore them:

Data Recovery Pro is an excellent tool

Follow the steps of Data Recovery Setup and install the program on your computer;

Launch it and scan your computer for files encrypted by Goofed ransomware;

Restore them.

ShadowExplorer might help you

To be able to use this tool, you have to check whether the ransomware has deleted Shadow Volume Copies from your PC. If not, you can try to recover your files by following the instruction template below.